Latest news with #ConsumersEnergy
CBS News
a day ago
- Business
- CBS News
Michigan, environmental groups challenge federal order to keep power plant open
Environmental groups and Michigan's attorney general filed separate challenges Wednesday against a federal order that is keeping a coal-fired power plant open this summer. The environmental coalition said there is no energy emergency that would justify keeping Consumers Energy's J.H. Campbell plant alive in Ottawa County, near Lake Michigan. The U.S. Energy Department "has no authority to compel Consumers to rehabilitate — and effectively reconstruct — the increasingly unreliable plant, nor to override the state's and utility's decision to replace the plant with less expensive and cleaner sources," the 54-page petition says. Consumers Energy had planned to close the power station by May 31 as part of a transition to cleaner energy. But the Energy Department intervened just days earlier, saying the plant must remain open, at least until late August, because of possible electricity shortfalls in the central U.S. The Midcontinent Independent System Operator, known as MISO, manages the flow of electricity in 15 U.S. states and Manitoba in Canada. MISO has said there should be enough electricity this summer, though it cited the potential for "elevated risk" during extreme weather. "This type of order is fairly unprecedented," lawyer Shannon Fisk of Earthjustice said. "It's a fabricated emergency." The Energy Department defended its position. "This administration is committed to ensuring Americans have access to reliable, affordable and secure energy that isn't dependent on whether the sun shines or the wind blows," spokesperson Ben Dietderich said. Consumers Energy said it is complying with the order, noting that the first coal delivery arrived before the planned May 31 decommissioning. It is unclear whether the challenges by Attorney General Dana Nessel and environmental groups would be settled by the end of August when the order expires. Fisk said the order could be extended. A lawsuit also could be pursued. In Pennsylvania, an oil and gas plant was also ordered to keep its turbines running as a hedge against electricity shortages in the 13-state mid-Atlantic grid. The Eddystone Generating Station is just south of Philadelphia on the Delaware River.
CBS News
a day ago
- Climate
- CBS News
More than 8,000 Southeast Michigan customers remain without power in aftermath of Wednesday's storms
More than 8,000 Southeast Michigan customers remained without power Thursday morning in the aftermath of storms that brought heavy rain, high winds and at least one tornado to the region. No injuries were reported from the storms. Most southeast Michigan electricity customers get their electricity from DTE Energy, which is showing over 8,000 outage reports on its online maps. Only a few outages for southeast Michigan were shown on the Consumers Energy online map. The site, which curates power outage numbers against state and county maps, also showed 8,053 outages across Southeast Michigan, with most of that number in Wayne and Oakland counties. The National Weather Service plans to do a storm survey Thursday, but has confirmed that a tornado touched down near 14 Mile Road in Macomb County Wednesday afternoon. The damage in the Fraser area includes downed trees and some flooding. With that, Michigan has had 29 tornadoes so far in 2025, the sixth highest in the state's history. June is usually the peak time of tornado weather in Southeast Michigan. Looking ahead, a heat wave is in the forecast. Closings and reschedulings Because of the federal holiday of Juneteenth, some banks and many government offices including the Michigan Secretary of State branches were already expected to be closed for the day on Thursday. The Detroit Tigers will host a double header Thursday with the Pittsburgh Pirates, as Wednesday's game was canceled due to the weather situation. St. Clair Shores Parks and Recreation canceled Wednesday's Music on the Lake concert and plans to reschedule. And Birmingham's Summer Concert in the park for Wednesday was canceled.
Mint
2 days ago
- Business
- Mint
Michigan, environmental groups challenge federal order to keep power plant open
DETROIT (AP) — Environmental groups and Michigan's attorney general filed separate challenges Wednesday against a federal order that is keeping a coal-fired power plant open this summer. The environmental coalition said there's no energy emergency that would justify keeping Consumers Energy's J.H. Campbell plant alive in Ottawa County, near Lake Michigan. The U.S. Energy Department 'has no authority to compel Consumers to rehabilitate — and effectively reconstruct — the increasingly unreliable plant, nor to override the state's and utility's decision to replace the plant with less expensive and cleaner sources,' the 54-page petition says. Consumers Energy had planned to close the power station by May 31 as part of a transition to cleaner energy. But the Energy Department intervened just days earlier, saying the plant must remain open, at least until late August, because of possible electricity shortfalls in the central U.S. The Midcontinent Independent System Operator, known as MISO, manages the flow of electricity in 15 U.S. states and Manitoba in Canada. MISO has said there should be enough electricity this summer though it cited the potential for 'elevated risk' during extreme weather. 'This type of order is fairly unprecedented,' said lawyer Shannon Fisk of Earthjustice. 'It's a fabricated emergency.' There was no immediate response to an email seeking comment from the Energy Department. Consumers Energy said it is complying with the federal order. 'The first coal delivery arrived at the plant before the original May 31 decommissioning date,' spokesperson Brian Wheeler said. It's unclear whether the challenges by Attorney General Dana Nessel and environmental groups would be settled by the end of August when the order expires. Fisk said the order could be extended. A lawsuit also could be pursued. In Pennsylvania, an oil-and-gas plant was also ordered to keep its turbines running as a hedge against electricity shortages in the 13-state mid-Atlantic grid. The Eddystone plant is just south of Philadelphia on the Delaware River.
2 days ago
- Business
Michigan, environmental groups challenge federal order to keep power plant open
DETROIT -- Environmental groups and Michigan's attorney general filed separate challenges Wednesday against a federal order that is keeping a coal-fired power plant open this summer. The environmental coalition said there's no energy emergency that would justify keeping Consumers Energy's J.H. Campbell plant alive in Ottawa County, near Lake Michigan. The U.S. Energy Department 'has no authority to compel Consumers to rehabilitate — and effectively reconstruct — the increasingly unreliable plant, nor to override the state's and utility's decision to replace the plant with less expensive and cleaner sources,' the 54-page petition says. Consumers Energy had planned to close the power station by May 31 as part of a transition to cleaner energy. But the Energy Department intervened just days earlier, saying the plant must remain open, at least until late August, because of possible electricity shortfalls in the central U.S. The Midcontinent Independent System Operator, known as MISO, manages the flow of electricity in 15 U.S. states and Manitoba in Canada. MISO has said there should be enough electricity this summer though it cited the potential for 'elevated risk' during extreme weather. 'This type of order is fairly unprecedented,' said lawyer Shannon Fisk of Earthjustice. 'It's a fabricated emergency.' There was no immediate response to an email seeking comment from the Energy Department. Consumers Energy said it is complying with the federal order. 'The first coal delivery arrived at the plant before the original May 31 decommissioning date,' spokesperson Brian Wheeler said. It's unclear whether the challenges by Attorney General Dana Nessel and environmental groups would be settled by the end of August when the order expires. Fisk said the order could be extended. A lawsuit also could be pursued. In Pennsylvania, an oil-and-gas plant was as a hedge against electricity shortages in the 13-state mid-Atlantic grid. The Eddystone plant is just south of Philadelphia on the Delaware River.
The Independent
2 days ago
- Business
- The Independent
Michigan, environmental groups challenge federal order to keep power plant open
Environmental groups and Michigan's attorney general filed separate challenges Wednesday against a federal order that is keeping a coal-fired power plant open this summer. The environmental coalition said there's no energy emergency that would justify keeping Consumers Energy's J.H. Campbell plant alive in Ottawa County, near Lake Michigan. The U.S. Energy Department 'has no authority to compel Consumers to rehabilitate — and effectively reconstruct — the increasingly unreliable plant, nor to override the state's and utility's decision to replace the plant with less expensive and cleaner sources,' the 54-page petition says. Consumers Energy had planned to close the power station by May 31 as part of a transition to cleaner energy. But the Energy Department intervened just days earlier, saying the plant must remain open, at least until late August, because of possible electricity shortfalls in the central U.S. The Midcontinent Independent System Operator, known as MISO, manages the flow of electricity in 15 U.S. states and Manitoba in Canada. MISO has said there should be enough electricity this summer though it cited the potential for 'elevated risk' during extreme weather. 'This type of order is fairly unprecedented,' said lawyer Shannon Fisk of Earthjustice. 'It's a fabricated emergency.' There was no immediate response to an email seeking comment from the Energy Department. Consumers Energy said it is complying with the federal order. 'The first coal delivery arrived at the plant before the original May 31 decommissioning date,' spokesperson Brian Wheeler said. It's unclear whether the challenges by Attorney General Dana Nessel and environmental groups would be settled by the end of August when the order expires. Fisk said the order could be extended. A lawsuit also could be pursued. In Pennsylvania, an oil-and-gas plant was also ordered to keep its turbines running as a hedge against electricity shortages in the 13-state mid-Atlantic grid. The Eddystone plant is just south of Philadelphia on the Delaware River.
